James Purefoy on Fisherman’s Friends characters having fame 'thrust upon them' in the sequel

Virgin Radio

22 Jul 2022, 11:37

Actor James Purefoy joined the Chris Evans Breakfast Show with Sky to talk about starring in the highly-anticipated new film, Fisherman’s Friends: One And All.

The film is the sequel to the 2019 comedy hit Fisherman’s Friends. Talking about the true story that inspired the film and its new sequel, James said: “A bunch of guys, some of them are fishermen, some of them aren’t fishermen, they live in Port Isaac in Cornwall. And they used to sing sea shanties, on a place called the Platt, which is down in their harbour in Port Isaac. [It’s] a tiny little village, which is, like, one road in, one road out.” 

He continued: “What happened was, a record company executive pitched up there on holiday once, and he saw them, and he liked the cut of their jib, and then he got them to record an album, and that album went in to the album charts at, I think, number six or seven.

“So they became really well known, and they won Radio 2 Folk Band of the Year that year, and then they just went really big. And this is the story of them.”

This time around, we follow the group as they attempt to navigate the pressures and pitfalls of their newfound fame. James said: “We don’t actually play any of the individual guys from the band. They are composite characters, but yes, they then had to deal with fame, which is perhaps not easy because it was suddenly thrust upon them, and then, of course, they went to Glastonbury, and they supported Beyoncé on the Pyramid Stage!”

Talking about his character Jim, James said: “He is finding fame difficult to deal with, and he’s getting angry with the band and… members of his family, and what we realise in the film is that he has not dealt with the death of his father, who died in the first film. 

“He’s not really expressed or talked about his grief. He’s been bottling it all up and it’s been all squeaking out sideways, which I think can often happen when people go through levels of grief or trauma.

“But then, he finds the love of a good woman, which is where Imelda May comes into it.”

The Irish singer-songwriter makes her debut acting role in the film. Speaking about her, James told Chris: “If you look up the word ‘authenticity’ in the dictionary, it will just say, ‘see: Imelda May’.

“She’s just glorious and she’s lovely in the film, and she’s fresh and funny and sweet and kind.”

Also in the film are returning cast members including Maggie Steed, Dave Johns, Sam Swainsbury, Jade Anouka and David Hayman, whilst Richard Harrington, Ramon Tikram and Joshua McGuire are new to the cast. 

And there might just be a very familiar face in the movie. James said: “This film contains - as far as I’m aware - Chris Evans’ on screen acting debut!”

Indeed, our very own Chris Evans shot some lines for the film. On Chris’ time on set, James said: “You are flying by the seat of your pants here every single day of your life, whereas on a film, you have to be consistent, you have to deliver the same lines for a start.” 

He added: “You were so full of humility that day, and I suppose I was slightly surprised by that! But only in the sense that I could see you were slightly apprehensive about having to deliver the same thing over and over and, and would you be able to do that. And you did, with flying colours!”  

Regarding where the Fisherman's Friends story could potentially go from here, James said: “I could be wrong here, but I think there were fractions in the group when they went off to tour in Australia."

When Chris asked what the chances are of there being a third film in the series, James - who is also an executive producer - responded: “We’ll see won’t we? It’ll all depend on whether or not this is successful, I guess. That’s what it always comes down to with movies. It’s the bottom line. If this movie is successful, if there’s appetite, if there’s story.”

Fisherman’s Friends: One And All is in cinemas nationwide from Friday 19th August.

For more great interviews listen to  The Chris Evans Breakfast Show with Sky, weekdays from 6:30am on Virgin Radio, or  catch up on-demand here.